Tucked away on a quiet, woodsy road near the Coast of Maine, I came upon a small abandoned cottage at the edge of a meadow. I purchased the house in June 2012 and immediately began renovating the home and nine acres of land. On April Fools' Day 2013, however, everything changed! Not only has my home been reconstructed almost overnight, I have as well! I invite you to join this experience with me as I journal about the miracles along the way.

Friday, July 20, 2012

The Mighty Oak

The sun was shining, the air was clear and a nice, soft breeze was blowing across the meadow...a perfect day to start tearing the shingles off the roof!

Michael and young Michael finished up another project they were working on and headed to the cottage around noon yesterday to start the roof job. When they arrived, however, a large branch from the old oak tree was blocking the driveway. Upon inspecting the massive oak that sits close to the road, the men discovered a large portion of the oak's side had peeled away from the tremendous weight of it's branches.

We knew this was going to happen at some point but we were hoping we could put it off for just a little longer. We're actually glad it happened now because it would have been awful if someone was underneath it when it fell. We think that the first big branch that we cut a few weeks ago, was supporting this branch and it just couldn't hold up the weight anymore.

It's a grand old tree, at least fifteen feet around (even though it doesn't look that big in the photos). Michael's nephew Matt, who is a licensed Arborist, came to check it out and told us the tree was well over 200 years old. We don't want to lose the tree so we are going to have him trim and prune as much as he can to save it and make it safe. There will be at least three years of firewood from what is trimmed...that will pay for the tree work! I think that's a pretty good deal don't you?

After the tree episode, ladders were positioned and the dumpster was ready to be filled with old roof shingles. Because it's such a small roof, it didn't take long for the east side of the house to be completely stripped and watershield applied.

These photos were taken with Michael's phone so the quality isn't that great... but you get the idea.

(Note: We're planning on covering that chimney with stone as well as the foundation of the house.)

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I would love to hear from you. Thanks for visiting the Catch Meadow Cottage Blog!

I moved to Maine 28 years ago and since then I have been fortunate enough to own and renovate more than 14 houses and cottages. I have a passion for finding something that no one else seems to want and turning it into something that many admire. I have always had a love for gardening and decorating and decided it might be fun to share this passion with others. I hope you enjoy the photos and insights I will post here. Thanks for visiting.
Joy to You,
Carole